Box Score
Box Score

CORTLAND, N.Y. - The nationally ninth-ranked Cortland field hockey team scored two early second-half goals and defeated Rensselaer, 2-0, Saturday afternoon at the SUNY Cortland Stadium Complex in non-conference action. The Red Dragons improved to 4-0 with the win, while the Engineers remained winless on the season and fell to 0-5.

Freshman Sara Woodward (Pine Plains) led the Cortland offense with a goal and an assist, while sophomore Danielle Hand (Whitney Point) scored her team-high third goal of the season and senior Lauren Eichenberger (Suffern) recorded an assist. Junior goalie Ashley Hughes (Selden/Comsewogue) made one second-half save to earn her firstcollegiate shutout.

Sophomore goalie Briana Earle (Baldwinsville/C.W. Baker) stopped 12 shot for the Engineers.

Scoring opportunities were scarce in the first 24 minutes of the first half until Earle denied Eichenberger's bid right in front with 10 minutes, 45 seconds remaining and then stopped back-to-back shots by junior Brenda Semit (Holland Patent) and freshman Liz DeWaters (Lockport/Royalton-Hartland) with less than five minutes left in the half.

Cortland finally solved Earle 3:03 into the second stanza. After a flurry of shots right in front, Woodward tapped a pass to Hand who stuffed a shot through traffic for what proved to be the game winner. Just over four minutes later, Eichenberger sent a low, hard blast into the arc where Woodward deflected a shot past Earle.

RPI had two good looks later in the half, but junior Jessica Corrigan's (South Burlington, VT/Northfield Mount Hermon) shot went wide and Hughes made a kick save on senior Margaret Chowaniec's (Burlington, CT/Lewis Mills) bid from the right side.

Cortland outshot RPI, 19-2, in the game and had a convincing 14-1 advantage in penalty corners.